Luke Pollard, the UK Parliament’s Under-Secretary of State for Armed Forces, said that Western countries have almost exhausted their weapons stockpiles after two years of support for Ukraine. This is stated in the article of The Times, Komersant ukrainskyi
reports.
Pollard spoke at the UN headquarters in New York, emphasising the importance of strengthening arms production in both Western countries and Ukraine. He stressed that it is now necessary to establish long-term strategic plans for a reliable supply of weapons. According to him, many countries have already given a significant portion of their military resources to Ukraine, which contributes to closer trade cooperation.
Although Pollard did not specify how depleted the British arms stockpile is, he noted that it needs not only to be replenished but also to ensure that the country’s defence potential is constantly supported.
Earlier, representatives of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine expressed concern that the UK no longer has the ability to provide significant military assistance. However, Pollard stressed that the transfer of weapons to Ukraine was the right decision, even if it led to the depletion of its own reserves.
British Defence Secretary John Healey also noted that Ukraine lacks military personnel who could be sent abroad for training. This, he said, is a significant obstacle to training military personnel.
In addition, the British Ministry of Defence believes that Ukraine should sign contracts with British defence companies and develop its own arms production more quickly.
According to a report by the National Audit Office, in September it became known that British arms stocks were so depleted that the government was forced to reduce military aid to Ukraine in 2023. This is because further support could pose a threat to the UK’s own defence capabilities.
According to The Times, the total value of aid provided to Ukraine from British stockpiles was £171.5 million (approximately $229 million) for the period 2021-2024. However, the vast majority of this amount was provided in 2022.
During his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in New York, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised that his country would continue to support Ukraine in the coming “crucial weeks and months”.
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It is worth noting that the number of Western weapons that Ukraine “lacks” is illustrated by the fact that as of 2021, there were 4,600 F-16s in the world, most of which were in Western countries. As of September 2024, no more than 10 of these aircraft had been transferred to Ukraine.
Western weapons and permits for their use
As is well known, the United States(and Germany after them) allow the use of weapons provided by them only for strikes on the border territories of Russia. This permission was granted by US President Joe Biden only at the end of May, and before that, strikes on Russian territory with US weapons were prohibited altogether.
However, towards the end of June, the US side unofficially stated that the restrictions “do not apply to geography or a certain radius”. This was interpreted as meaning that Ukraine could allegedly strike at those facilities and territories from which attacks on Ukraine are directly directed, even if they are deeper than the border areas. But it has recently emerged that this may also mean that Ukraine is not allowed to strike certain targets even in the occupied territories.
Experts say that border strikes will not change the situation at the front, so Zelenskyy is asking his partners for permission to use their weapons to strike Russian territory. Some Western countries have already given such permission.